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The second episode of Westworld, "Chestnut," took us deeper into the mysteries of robot consciousness and the Man In Black's obsessive quest. Now we'll take a deep analytical dive into Westworld on Ars Technica's podcast Decrypted.

Further Reading

On this episode, I'm joined by Ars Technica's video editor Jennifer Hahn, who is also a documentary filmmaker and editor. We talk about the recent episode, as well as how it fits into the world established in the original Westworld movie, its sequel Futureworld, and the short-lived 1980 TV series BeyondWestworld. Jen also talks to us about Westworld's cinematography and design.

Topics discussed: Whether the Westworld theme park is underground (maybe?), William's white hat status (dubious), the robot UX (command line mode and analysis mode are fascinating), the clash between Lee and Ford over why people come to the park (revealing), the plots of the original Westworld movies and TV series (they involve robots taking over the park and creating clone versions of world leaders so they can control humanity), and why it matters that the series is shot on 35mm film (you can control the shadows). Also: holy crap was that scene in the robot repair area with Maeve ever creepy!

I'll be analyzing, debating, and dissecting Westworld every week with a different guest, and we'll post the podcast on Tuesdays. The episodes air on Sunday, so you have plenty of time to watch before we get into major spoilers. Yes, there are spoilers. Listen when you're ready!

Decrypted is Ars Technica's weekly podcast about the TV that obsesses us. Currently we're dissecting Westworld. Listen or subscribe however you please above and let us know what you think—ideas, questions, or your favorite theory about whether Bernard is a robot—through the comments section, on iTunes, or via e-mail.